steadyaku47

Monday, 1 August 2016

Najib has License to Kill with NSC : 007 eat your heart out!

steadyaku47 comment : Najib Razak needs the National Security Council (NSC) Act as we need air to live. And from today he has it. There is nothing we can do about it until we can forcefully take back for ourselves what is ours...namely our right to govern ourselves.

Act allows Najib Razak to designate any area as a 'security area', where he can deploy forces without a warrant

World Bulletin / News Desk

Malaysia's embattled prime minister will soon be equipped with
supreme security powers, with the much criticized National Security
Council (NSC) Act coming into force Monday. The Act allows Najib Razak
to designate any area as a "security area", where he can deploy forces
to search vehicles, individuals or premises without a warrant, and also
allows investigators to dispense with formal inquests into killings by
the armed forces or police in those areas.

Rights groups said they see the Act as a threat to the country's
democracy as it is open to abuse. The chief executive of the Institute
for Democracy and Economic Affairs, Wan Saiful Wan Jan, says the Act is
extremely vulnerable, enabling easy manipulation by a sitting prime
minister to protect his personal powers. "The civil societies and others
are concerned that the NSC can be used against anything that the
government is unhappy with, including street rallies, which are the
voice of the people," he said.

As an example, he says that under the bill – to be chaired by the
prime minister – "if a street rally is scheduled to take place demanding
Razak's resignation he can declare the venue of the rally as 'a
security area', which means people can be arrested and no one can
question the actions".

Razak has been under tremendous political pressure, and calls have
been made for him to resign over international probes for corruption
into a state wealth fund he heads.

The security area would be valid for six months at a time, subject to
renewal by the premier, with forces in the area given sweeping powers,
including the capability to arrest and search persons, enter and search
premises, and seize property without a warrant. Furthermore, forces will
be allowed to use force against persons -- including force amounting to
death -- as they deem reasonable and necessary in the circumstances "to
preserve national security".

Moreover, the Act grants immunity to members of security forces and
personnel of other government entities for their acts in any of the
security areas. The NSC Act was gazetted under the federal constitution
June 7, although the law did not receive the official consent of the
Malaysian King and the country's powerful Conference of Rulers. Via the
conference, the rulers had highlighted their unhappiness and demanded
for the law to be fine-tuned -- a request seemingly ignored by the
government. Both the upper and lower houses of Parliament passed a bill
to enable the NSC Act on Dec 22 last year, despite heavy protests from
opposition lawmakers and civil society groups.

They alleged that the Bill would grant powers to the prime minister
detrimental to the position of the Malaysian King and the Federal
Constitution. Razakh, however, has said that his administration would
never interfere with the powers of the King or the Conference of Rulers.
Minister in Prime Minister's Department Shahidan Kassim says that that
the Act would not give the prime minister "dictator-like powers".

"The powers given under the Act will not make the prime minister a
dictator, as the power to declare a state of emergency still remain with
the Malaysian King," he said on Saturday He underlined that Malaysians
must be aware of the threat posed by Daesh and other militant groups in
the country, and thus such a law is needed to take control of the
situation in such cases.

The United Nations Human Rights Office for Southeast Asia has said
provisions under the Act run counter to the requirement to investigate
wrongdoing. "We are gravely concerned that the immunity provisions in
the Act may encourage human rights violations," Laurent Meillan, OHCHR's
acting regional representative in Bangkok, said in a statement this
week.

She expressed concern that the Act could also be used to impose
unjust restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of
assembly.

"We call on the [Malaysian] government to revise the Act to bring it
in line with international human rights norms and standards," she said.
"Furthermore, we encourage the government to allow for an open and
transparent consultation process on the provisions in the Act with all
relevant stakeholders."